


Bear Season

by PlushPanda



Category: The Last of Us
Genre: F/F, prompt fills, shapeshifter!au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-16
Updated: 2018-09-16
Packaged: 2019-06-28 07:02:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 4,036
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15702231
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PlushPanda/pseuds/PlushPanda
Summary: For some reason, it's always Dina who's chasing Ellie.OREllie is a (bear) shapeshifter.





	1. Chasing

**Author's Note:**

> Please note this fic is a vaguely cohesive story, built from (short) prompts! 
> 
> The first few prompts are provided by dare121.

Dina deepened her breathing, relaxed her shoulders, and pumped her legs as she ran through the woods. She jumped across an upturned root, dodged a stray branch—and there was her prey.

“You cheater!” Dina yelled after the great big, huffing brown form. She glanced down and saw that the footprints she had been chasing had turned into pawprints.

Two small round ears twisted back, and a fluffy face glanced over its shoulder to catch a glimpse of Dina.

Dina used the distraction to her advantage, forcing her body to give her a burst of speed and leaping onto the bear. She grasped at the thick fur, successfully clamping to the beast. “Hah!” she exclaimed her victory, panting. The bear grunted, wobbling slightly on its feet. “Oh shit—”

Dina had the breath knocked out of her as she landed on the ground, but she still managed to gasp in enough air to not pass out. There were stars in the blue sky that she was pretty sure weren’t supposed to be there, and her vision was narrowing on the tree tops.

A worried human face appeared above her. “Holy shit, are you okay?” Ellie’s face came into focus. “Dina!”

Dina tripped over her tongue when she tried to talk, and was promptly rearranged to ease her breathing. She grasped at Ellie’s shoulder to stop her frantic movements.

Ellie briefly adjusted her hold on the back of Dina’s neck before she paused, shooting her a questioning look.

“Su—” she wheezed. 

Ellie frowned, inching closer.

“Suck it, Williams,” Dina finally managed, then hacked up a laugh at Ellie’s deadpan face.

“You ass,” Ellie finally laughed, realizing Dina was more than okay if she was ribbing her for her loss.


	2. It's time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "It's time" prompt provided by @dare121.

**  
** “C’mon, hurry up, it’s time,” Dina pushed, walking over to where she knew Ellie was getting dressed. Once she came face to face with the back of Ellie’s frame, dressed in briefs and nothing else, she realized she probably should’ve waited a little longer.    
  
Ellie proceeded to pick up her clothes from a branch, unperturbed.   
  
“Oh, sorry.” Dina spun around before—God forbid—she saw her front.   
  
“Huh?” Dina imagined that Ellie took this moment to turn around and see what the fuss was about. “Oh, don’t worry about it.” Some shuffling indicated that Ellie was putting on... something. “If I had a list of people who were allowed to see me naked, you’d be at the top of it.”   
  
Ellie had said it offhandedly, but Dina felt it all the way to the tips of her fingers, and she couldn’t help but grin like an idiot. “Yeah? And who else is on this list?”   
  
“I don’t know, the doctor?” Ellie muttered, sounding more distracted than Dina could place. “Shit.”   
  
“Hmn?” Without really thinking, Dina turned around to see what Ellie was cursing at.    
  
Ellie was slightly more dressed now, her jeans hanging loosely off her hips, but she was holding her shirt in front of her chest. It had been ripped along the seams, and wearing it seemed like a dangerous game of nudity roulette, which she probably realized as she studied it with a crinkled nose.   
  
“Suits you right for cheating,” Dina said, feeling a little too pleased with herself. Ellie had shifted during a sudden game of ‘last one at the compound,’ tearing her clothes in the meanwhile.    
  
Thankfully, Ellie’s trusty flannel seemed to be fine. With a smirk that could eat her whole, Dina approached the fabric and took it with her on her way over to a pouting Ellie.   
  
Ellie sighed, looking up just when Dina came to a stop before her. True to her word, she seemed unphased by Dina seeing her in this state of undress. “I promised Joel I’d clean the entire house if I destroyed anything else with the bear.”   
  
Dina made sure to keep on her poker face as she said, “You can tell him I ripped it off you.” With a snap of the fabric, she draped the flannel over Ellie’s shoulders.   
  
Ellie snorted, cheeks turning pink despite the ridiculous notion. “At least he’d stop listening. It might buy me a day.”

Dina broke into a smile. “Please let me be there when you do.” She helped Ellie into her flannel one arm at the time, and then couldn’t help but glance down at her abs underneath the unbuttoned shirt. She had to bite her lip to keep any embarrassing sounds from escaping her, because she knew Ellie was fit, but being confronted with it like this was on a whole other level.

“Why do I get the feeling you’d rather undress me,” Ellie said, amused but subdued by what were no doubt Dina’s bedroom eyes.

Dina leaned in close enough to brush their noses together, her hands slipping up to rest on Ellie’s shoulders. She inhaled calmly, drawing her in, and said, “Don’t be so full of yourself,” before playfully slapping a hand to Ellie’s cheek and turning around. “Now hurry up or we’re gonna be late!”

Dina laughed to herself when she heard Ellie choking out a, “Oh-my-God, you dick,” as she walked away.

She couldn’t deny that stunt took a herculean effort to pull off. It would be a while yet before her retinas stopped showing her Ellie in undone jeans and flannel.

With a content smile and rosy cheeks, she waited for EIlie to catch up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I strive to make Ellie curse at least once every prompt <3


	3. Score

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Score" prompt provided by dare121.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And as an added bonus, dare121 also beta-ed this little chapter!

Dina marveled at the gorgeous plate of food Ellie set down before her. It held various fresh vegetables, venison, roasted pig, and fried chicken. It was too much for her human stomach to handle, but Ellie’s judgement of how many calories humans required was still poor as hell. Either that or she just liked finishing off her scraps.   
  
Probably the latter.   
  
“Whoa, I didn’t know you were a shifter too, Dina.” The surprised statement came from Marion, a fellow human she’d recently befriended at the village. She was seated across from her at the picnic table. They were were taken part in an event. The scent of barbeque and pine forest hung in the air, conversation was easy, and a small live band was showing off their skills.   
  
“Oh, yeah,” Dina answered, even as Ellie took a seat next to her. “I turn into a raging demon every month.”   
  
Ellie huffed a laugh, but didn’t say anything, opting to start into her venison with her bare hands instead. Her plate was filled even more generously. Most, if not all, shifters were eating with their hands, and the outnumbered humans stuck out with their small portions of food and cutlery.    
  
Marion shared an amused look with the fourth occupant of the table, Delilah, when Dina shot Ellie an incredulous, offended look. It took a second longer before Ellie took notice of the three pairs of eyes on her. “This is the moment where you say I’m grossly exaggerating and that I shoot sunshine out of my ass,” Dina said, pointing at her with a fork.   
  
“Oh, yeah.” Ellie bore a shit-eating grin as she properly faced their friends. “She asks me to turn into the bear before bed so she has a warm teddy to cuddle—basically a demon straight from hell.”   
  
Dina pretended to be mad for an entire 0.2 seconds before she gave Ellie a shove, which just made her laugh in response.   
  
“Oh, so you two are dating then?” Marion asked, smiling at the happy couple.   
  
Dina had just taken a bite, and, ever the human, preferred not to speak with her mouth full, so she passed the question off to Ellie with a look.   
  
“Dina is living in my cabin, so...” Ellie started, opening her mouth to answer  _ yes. _ She had even formed the first letter with her mouth, but she paused as a thought seemed to strike her. She turned to Dina and for the life of her, Dina couldn’t tell whether Ellie was joking when she said, “What  _ are _ we?”   
  
Dina promptly choked on her food.   
  
She coughed and hacked for a moment before it turned into a guffaw. “Ugh,” she groaned once she could breathe again. She reached out to pat Ellie on the cheek. “You’re lucky you’re cute.”   
  
Ellie smiled, not the least bit offended. Then, without preamble, she pointed at Dina’s venison. “Are you gonna eat that?”   
  
Dina felt the urge to point out that they hadn’t even properly started eating yet, but Ellie seemed to have made her soft. “No, go ahead,” she answered, giving her cheek another little pat.   
  
Also, she had enough food to feed two adult humans.   
  
“Score,” Ellie whispered, reaching over to help herself.   
  
With a shake of the head, she tried to communicate her amusement to Marion and Delilah through eye contact. Marion smiled at her in understanding, while Delilah was just happy to be there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And guess what! dare121 also wrote a thing based on the bear shapeshifter idea!! [/shameless promotion]


	4. Height

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Height" prompt provided by dare121.

On her way to deliver a package addressed to Dina, Marion heard a commotion coming from Ellie’s cabin, and she slowed her pace.   
  
She couldn’t help but overhear Ellie saying, “Just—jam it back up there.”   
  
Dina’s reply must have been quiet, since the next thing she heard was Ellie complaining through a suppressed laugh. “Don’t—don’t make me laugh. I don’t want to destroy the bed.”   
  
Marion started hesitating about her timing, but the door was already in view, and it was wide open. Surely, Dina and Ellie wouldn’t be up to something and leave the door open like that.   
  
Sure enough, when she peeked around the corner, her suspicions were confirmed. In a show of superior strength, Ellie was holding up one end of the bed, balancing it on two of its legs, while Dina was in the process of fixing one of the broken supports.    
  
Dina blew on the drying glue. She tested the leg’s sturdiness and, satisfied with the results, leaned down to grab a few nails and a hammer from a toolbox. Her eyes met Marion’s on her way back up. “Hey Marion, what’s up?”   
  
Marion snapped out of it. “A package came in for you.” She glanced around the cozy cabin. It was furnished like a bedroom she’d had back home, except the tones were earthy and wooden. The room bore a large bed, two dressers, and a desk. The only thing that was out of place was the worn leather chair in the corner. “Want me to leave it on the desk?”   
  
“Anywhere is fine,” Dina said, hammering a few nails into the support and frame.   
  
Marion left the package on the floor next to the door, eyeing the fix sceptically. “Are you sure that’s gonna hold?”   
  
“Not at all,” Dina quipped happily. “This right here, the absolute height of mechanical engineering, will have to be replaced with a new frame.”   
  
“We’re looking for wood already,” Ellie said, not taking her eyes off Dina’s handiwork. The bed was solid wood, but she seemed unaffected by holding the large weight.   
  
“Ah.” Marion watched a second longer, marveling at the newness of the shifter society she’d stumbled into, before a thought clicked into place.    
  
Ellie and Dina had broken the bed.   
  
Her cheeks ran hot with the suggestions her brain was providing. “Alright, well, uh, I’ll leave you to it. See you at lunch!”    
  
In retrospect, she probably would’ve been much less suspicious if she hadn’t sped off without waiting for an explanation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Knowing them (knowledge that is based on like 2 minutes of footage), Ellie probably broke the bed because of years of flopping onto it hehehe.
> 
> Feel free to leave a prompt, but I can't tell when or if I'll fill it!


	5. Switch places

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Switch places" prompt provided by, wow, dare121 again. It's almost like we're friends or something.

To this day, Dina didn’t think she had any kinks. She might have had preferences, but she wasn’t hyper fixated on any single object or act. At least until the moment she found a brown leather belt peeking out from underneath Ellie’s pillow. The belt was riddled with bite marks, and Dina knew exactly how they got there.    
  
All shifters were slightly more attuned to their instincts, and one of Ellie’s just so happened to involve marking. She liked to nip at her neck, gently pass her sharp teeth across her sensitive skin, but she never actually bit down. No, that was reserved for things not quite as important as another human being. In order to avoid any lasting damage, Dina’s fragile skin was switched out for sturdy leather.   
  
It was awkward for Ellie to bring up, under the guise of night, avoiding eye contact and speaking softly as she did. Her demeanor immediately triggered instant acceptance on Dina’s part. She completely skipped the phase where it should be weird for human standards to have their significant other bite entire chunks out of tough material, and went straight into feeling inexplicably hot.   
  
Ellie had to sink her teeth into leather to ground herself, especially beneath Dina’s touch, and by God, if that wasn’t the most attractive thing she had ever seen. The muscles in Ellie’s throat straining, jaw clenched tightly, as she moaned out her release—   
  
“Can you find it alright? It’s on the nightstand,” Ellie called from outside, snapping Dina out of her daydream.   
  
She swallowed thickly, tearing her eyes away from the bed, and grabbed the hammer from the nightstand.   
  
So. She definitely had a preference. Maybe even a kink.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All my friends are wholesome and don't stimulate this kind of content at all. On a completely unrelated note, dare121 also beta-ed this.


	6. Is this it?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Is this it?" prompt provided by—look, dare121 just gave me a shitload of prompts and you can assume they came from her unless otherwise specified.

“Is this it?” Dina asked, eyeing the cave entrance. It rose up to shoulder height and was wide enough to let a large bear in—which, she realized with a smile, made sense.   
  
“Yeah.” Ellie came to a stop beside her, adjusting her considerably larger backpack. Her voice held an edge of vulnerability, and was much softer when she asked, “What do you think?”   
  
Dina hadn’t been about to rip on Ellie’s remote hideout, but she sure as hell wasn’t going to now. “Nothing yet,” she quipped. “Can I just go in or is it booby-trapped?”   
  
Ellie briefly snorted. “God no,” she muttered, handing Dina a flashlight. “But there might be a raccoon or something. I’ll go first.”   
  
Dina’s eyebrows were raised as she followed Ellie with her eyes and watched her enter the cave with no light. “I’m dating Rambo,” she told herself incredulously.   
  
Dina thought Ellie would come out and announce everything was fine, which was why she almost had a heart attack when four reflecting eyes appeared in the darker recesses of the cave a few minutes later than expected. Thankfully, the light hit them quickly, revealing that Ellie was, indeed, holding a racoon.    
  
At the sight of Dina, it started twisting and struggling like mad, and before she could process what was happening, it had jumped out of Ellie’s arms and scurried off.   
  
Dina looked between the last known location of the raccoon and Ellie’s calm, calm face. She pursed her lips, letting the moment drag on for dramatic effect. “That wasn’t the first time, huh,” she said, mirroring Ellie’s cool despite the little heart attack she nearly suffered.   
  
“It was not.”   
  
She clicked on her flashlight and shined it into the darkness, revealing that there was a pathway leading up at a slight angle. “There better be a door in there or it’s teddy o’ clock.”   
  
Ellie grinned.   
  
Dina narrowed her eyes, instantly suspicious. “Or maybe it’s a good thing you’re furry, because you’ll be sleeping alone in the cold tonight, bye,” she said, turning around and heading for the quad they arrived in.   
  
“No, no!” Ellie protested, her arms materializing around Dina’s waist and hoisting her straight off the ground. “There’s a door. I was just thinking.”   
  
Unperturbed, like Ellie manhandled her on the regular, Dina craned her neck to catch a glimpse of Ellie’s face. “Thinking?”   
  
“I like it when you call me teddy,” she said softly, pressing her mouth against Dina’s shoulder.   
  
Dina groaned, rolling her neck until she was looking up at the sky. “Ugh, I can’t believe I’m gonna sleep with you tonight.”   
  
“You don’t _have_ to,” came the amused reply.   
  
“No, I’m gonna.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear to God I'm trying to make them kiss, but ???? curses.


	7. Moon

Dina was pulled from the edge of sleep when her pillow inhaled deeply. She’d been cuddled up into Ellie’s side for a while now, so she was surprised she was still awake. “Why the big teddy huff?” she asked quietly, as if talking softer would somehow keep Ellie less awake.   
  
“You’ll laugh,” Ellie muttered, adjusting her position slightly now that she knew she was awake.   
  
Dina smiled, lazily nuzzling into Ellie’s shirt. “Is that bad?”   
  
“I guess... not?” She paused briefly. “Okay, then don’t be a dick about it.”   
  
Intrigued, Dina opened her eyes and propped up her chin on Ellie’s shoulder. In the dark of the cave, she could hardly see her face, but the moon created enough of an outline that she could make out her features. Also, it helped that her eyes tended to glow in the dark, so she knew Ellie wasn’t looking at her. “I’ll adjust the dick gradient accordingly,” she promised, patting Ellie’s stomach.   
  
Glowing eyes settled on her face, and Ellie apparently trusted her, as she proceeded to admit that, “The moon is too bright.”   
  
Dina tilted her head. “That’s never stopped you before?”   
  
Ellie’s eyes flitted this way and that, searching for an answer. “Maybe because we’re further from the village?”   
  
“So you’re restless.” She smiled. “Due to the moon.”   
  
“Don’t—”   
  
“Like a werebear.”

“Wow, rude.” Ellie may have been whispering, but it sounded extremely loud in the silence. “That’s like calling a Canadian an American.”   
  
Dina snickered, shaking off the last of her sleep, but Ellie stayed eerily quiet. And it was hard to see what face she was pulling and whether she was insulted or not. “Wait, you’re serious? Werebears exist?” She raised a hand to feel the expression on Ellie’s face, tracing fingers from ear to brow to avoid poking an eye out. She couldn’t find a frown, so she felt for a smile—it was present.   
  
“No.” The smile underneath her fingers grew. “I mean, how would that work? Just turn during the full moon? That’s stupid.”    
  
Dina didn’t know whether to laugh or kick Ellie’s ass for being a dumbass.    
  
“No wonder they get hangovers in the movies. They do the equivalent of never stretching and running marathons every month,” Ellie thought out loud.   
  
Such a dumbass.

“I’d probably kill a man too if—”

Dina smothered her words with a kiss. Initially, she’d meant it to be a quick peck, but at Ellie’s relieved little sigh, she kissed her once more, slanting her lips against hers until most of the tension in her body had drained away.   
  
“Thanks,” Ellie breathed thoughtlessly.   
  
Dina laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Notice how elegantly I faded that out?? Avoiding the sexy scenes is my specialtyyyyy.


	8. War

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "War" prompt provided by trollbot8

“What’s going on?” Dina asked Marion, joining a crowd that had been forming near the dining hall. In the middle of the crowd, two shifters were at full blown war, grappling and roaring at each other. It was uncommon for shifters to get territorial and fight each other, but when it happened, it sounded like they were trying to kill each other.   
  
Or, at least, that’s what she assumed was happening. She was looking for Ellie in the crowd, ignoring most of the battle. They were supposed to meet up for lunch five minutes ago.   
  
“Whao, Dina, hey!” Marion said, snapping to attention. “What’s up?”   
  
Dina only blinked for a second, not expecting the question to be returned to her. “Uh, I’m—I’m looking for Ellie. Have you seen her?”   
  
“Oh yeah, she’s definitely here—around here. Somewhere.” Marion’s eyes flitted to the fighting animals and across the crowd. “It’s nearly lunchtime, maybe we should wait inside!”   
  
The ground shook as one of the shifters threw the other one to the ground, and Dina was startled into looking over. She caught a glimpse of a brown form hulking over a black, squiggling blur before Marion stepped in front of her. “They’re serving pizza today,” Marion added, looking like she was seconds away from giving her a friendly nudge.   
  
Marion was nice, but not  _ that _ nice.   
  
Dina was sure her smile didn’t reach her eyes when she said, “Okay, sure.”   
  
Marion looked way too relieved for the situation, and didn’t seem to suspect a thing as she lead the way to the dining hall.   
  
Dina pretended to follow for a step or two, but veered off into the crowd to spectate the tail end of the fight. The fight was between a brown bear and a black wolf, both still bearing remnants of clothing that they ripped out of during their shift. The bear smacked the wolf of equal size to the ground again, and proceeded to stand on its hind legs. It towered above the wolf with a great roar, daring it to get up again.    
  
At first, Dina didn’t recognize the bear in the throws of whatever rage fueled battle mode, but at the sight of its eyes and a familiar scar across its brow, she knew.   
  
What she didn’t know was what had gotten Ellie in this state in the first place. Or why no one was intervening. A glance around the crowd showed that even Joel was standing by, arms crossed and looking stern.   
  
The wolf stayed still, whimpering softly.    
  
Victorious, the bear seemed to regain self-awareness, becoming almost sheepish within a blink of an eye. It lowered itself to the ground, and sauntered away in the direction of their cabin. The surrounding people dispersed and continued on with their life like they’d just watched the weather channel.   
  
Dina watched everything unfold before her, unsure what to think. Though one thing was clear. She needed to talk to Ellie.

###

Dina arrived at their cabin to find Ellie was already halfway dressed and struggling to disinfect a bite wound on the back of her shoulder. She was seated on the bed with her back towards Dina, dressed in jeans and a tank top with the right strap pushed down.    
  
Dina wasn’t sure why it needed to be disinfected, because she’d been told that shifters’ immune systems were basically on steroids compared to humans.   
  
Ellie didn’t look up until Dina sat down next to her and wordlessly took the cotton from her hand to spread the disinfectant where she couldn’t reach.    
  
Dina was only quiet for a few seconds, focusing on getting the ointment where it needed to go. The wounds weren’t very deep and hardly bled, so it didn’t worry her. However, Ellie had probably mistaken the moment of concentration for the silent treatment, as she was the first to speak. “You saw that, huh?”   
  
“I wouldn’t have if Marion hadn’t acted so suspicious,” Dina joked, passing the cotton across the last of the puncture wounds. She caught Ellie’s eyes then, finding nothing but calm. “What happened back there anyway?”   
  
Ellie cringed as she remembered the occurrence, and averted her eyes. “Mike was talking shit.”   
  
Dina raised her eyebrows, unsure what words could trigger Ellie like that. Her hand slipped across Ellie’s lower back in an unconscious attempt to soothe. ”That must have been some serious shit.”   
  
Ellie frowned. “He was saying he could—he could make you disappear. Even make it look like an accident. Or like you moved away.” As she spoke, her grip on the spread tightened, and the muscles in her arms visibly stiffened. “That he could see through your sweet girlfriend facade or whatever,” she growled through clenched teeth.   
  
Dina’s eyes widened, genuinely surprised anyone would see her that way. But she gathered her wits about her before the situation could derail. Ellie had literally fought for her, so she was pretty sure she didn’t agree with him.   
  
About 90% sure.   
  
“You didn’t believe him, right?”   
  
“Of course not,” Ellie scoffed, dislodging most of her anger to speak in an appropriate tone of voice. Her frown melted away as she made eye contact, and the contrast was striking when she adopted a softer voice to say, ”You love me.”   
  
Dina’s jaw slackened, and she barely managed not to gape.    
  
Then, she burst into laughter.    
  
Ellie tried to catch her eye as Dina doubled over for added effect. “What?”   
  
“I’ve never had my ’I love you’ stolen from me before,” Dina laughed, grasping at the back of Ellie’s top to steady herself. With the last dregs of a breathy laugh, she settled her with a look. “You absolute dummy.” She cupped Ellie’s cheek with her free hand and stole a quick kiss, smiling throughout. “I do love you, yeah.”   
  
Ellie crinkled her nose, returning the smile. “I know.”   
  
“I love a jerk,” Dina sighed, silencing Ellie’s resulting snicker with another kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> U kno... if I'd seen more of them, I'd probably know whether they're OOC or not. Curse my impatience!


End file.
